Heavy rain brings floods to Maguindanao

SULTAN KUDARAT, Maguindanao – Heavy rain pounding Maguindanao since Wednesday, October 8, left at least 10 villages under water, affecting nearly 10,000 people.

Rescue teams were deployed as early as 5 am on Thursday, October 9, after the Ambal River overflowed, flooding low-lying areas, according to Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao (ARMM) disaster coordinator Mauricio Cidiles.

As of 2 pm, army trucks were still ferrying residents from interior villages to the national highway.

There were reports of massive flooding in Mamasapano, Datu Piang, Salipada K Pendatun, Rajah Buaya, and the two Kabuntalan towns, according to Cidiles.

Cidiles also said his office is still counting the number of affected people in other towns.

Stranded commuters 

Hundreds of vehicles were also stranded along the Davao-Cotabato highway, forcing thousands of passengers, including the wife of ARMM Governor Mujib Hataman to wait for rescue trucks.

Several journalists traveling to Cotabato City for the launching of the European Union Peace Journalism Award were among the stranded passengers.

Newsdesk.asia’s Jeffrey Tupas said they waited for 3 hours before the military trucks were able to rescue them.

“We were stranded in Salimbao at 9 am. We arrived in Cotabato at 12 noon,” Tupas said.

Most of Maguindanao towns around the Liguasan Marsh are submerged in floodwater after a heavy downpour – a recurring and perennial problem in the province.

“A 5-hour continuous rain will already result in flooding in most low-lying barangays,” Cidiles said.

But the disaster officer said no casualties have been reported so far.

He also added that Sultan Kudarat Mayor Shamim Mastura led town officials in the rescue operations and in distributing relief goods to residents affected by the flood. – Rappler.com